Energy 30

Promoting the role of women within the workforce

As mentioned above, the AD industry could create millions of jobs within the next 10 years, offering the perfect opportunity to create a diverse and dynamic workforce.

However, more needs to be done to promote roles for women in the renewable energy sector and promoting diversity should be action-orientated. What is stopping women from applying? What solutions can be developed to overcome this? And how can these solutions be delivered in order to make an impact?

Encouraging a younger generation

Stevie Leeks, marketing manager for Privilege Finance, a specialist funder in climate reduction and mitigation projects, says that most women currently working in renewables have come across their jobs by chance.

She emphasises the need for roles in renewables to be highlighted to a younger generation, and points to the absence of a specific qualification which makes this really difficult.

Stevie explains: “The sector is growing in response to the climate crisis; there is so much career potential in the sector, but it just isn’t widely recognised.

“Offering an AD or renewable energy focused qualification would definitely encourage young people into what is a very important sector, both now and in the future.”

Changing public and self-perception

Dr Skorupska was one of the first female power station managers in the early 1990s, and explains that facilitating conversations with male employees was crucial for her success. “You have to establish a level of respect and the best way to do that is through creating conversations and changing those perceptions of women in the industry.”

But she emphasises that it’s not just about educating your male peers but a whole industry-level change. “Job descriptions need to be more encouraging for women. Women respond to roles where they can make an impact, so the wording of these job descriptions should be a key consideration of all companies. It requires a complete mindset change from everyone on all levels,” she added.

Implementing policies

Dr Skorupska also advises the need for strict policies in the sector. “We need policies which address gender discrimination and the barriers which women in the sector face.

“Everyone needs to be aware of the underrepresentation of women and the gender imbalance in the industry to overcome this,” she explains. “And by implementing policies, we can encourage new members into the sector and create a much more open culture in renewable energy.”

Both women agree that they were fortunate enough to have a brilliant support network around them when venturing into the world of renewables, but they appreciate that not everyone is so lucky and a lack of external support can vastly impact career choices.

Offering an AD or renewable energy focused qualification would definitely encourage young people into what is a very important sector. – Stevie Leeks, Privilege Finance.

Stevie Leeks, of Privilege Finance , believes most women in renewables have come across their jobs by chance.

DR NINA SKORUPSKA

Chief Executive, REA

r-e-a.net

EXTRACTING VALUE IN THE BATTERY LIFECYCLE

Li-ion battery systems are vital to the future of renewable energy, but sustainability is also a crucial consideration, as Sam Bailey, Partner and Patent Attorney, Mewburn Ellis, explains.

Most with a basic understanding of chemistry will have heard of chromatography, solvent extractions, and precipitations. Indeed, you could be forgiven for thinking that chemical extraction and separation techniques and their applications are typically well-established. New developments of these techniques, however, are starting to show promise in lessening the environmental impact of lithiumion (Li-ion) batteries.

A surge in demand

With developments in technologies such as electric vehicles and grid power storage to support renewable energy generation, the demand for Liion battery capacity is set to rise exponentially in the next decade.

To meet this demand there is a huge focus in the scientific community on improving the efficiency and capacity of these battery systems by changing the underlying cell chemistry and construction.

While those innovations will play a vital role in meeting the future energy needs, addressing the environmental impact at both ends of the battery lifecycle is also essential if this form of power storage is to be truly sustainable.

The negative (-)

Both ends of the battery lifecycle share some common challenges, like extracting a desired pure material from a heterogeneous feedstock. At the birth of a battery, raw materials must be extracted, maybe from a mined ore, and made into a battery cell in an energy efficient and environmentally friendly way. At the death of a battery the raw materials need to be retrieved as far as possible to feed back into the manufacturing process alongside the freshly extracted raw materials.

These challenges have prompted researchers to adapt existing extraction technologies to meet the specific conditions in the battery environment. For example froth floatation extraction is a well-known technique in the mining industry to increase the hydrophobicity of valuable parts of a mined ore so that they can be skimmed off the surface of a floatation vessel while the less valuable components sink to the bottom.

Unfortunately valuable battery cathode materials such as lithium manganese oxide (LMO) typically sink in this type of system making them hard to separate.